UberPOP suspends its services due to protests

The UberPOP service connects customers to unlicensed private drivers, unlike its mainstream Uber service which is staffed by private chauffeurs.

Uber will suspend its low-cost UberPOP car service in France following a series of strikes by irate taxi drivers who blocked roads, assaulted Uber drivers and protested.

Taxi drivers in France, who have to pay up to €240,000 for their licenses, are furious at Uber, which they say is endangering their livelihoods by taking customers away from licensed cab companies.

While popular with consumers, Uber is facing increasing limits on its activities in EU countries and a barrage of legal challenges spurred on by a furious taxi lobby, which says Uber drivers should be regulated the same way as normal cabs.

UberPOP has been present in Paris since 2011 and has expanded to other cities, but still faces a legal battle. A law from October 2014 instituted a ban on putting clients in touch with unregistered drivers but Uber had contested the ruling, saying it would remain operating the service until it could appeal.